Storage container for air-sensitive materials



g- 1967 s. E. BOHLMANN STORAGE CONTAINER FOR AIR-SENSITIVE MATERIALS 2 Sheets-$heet 1 Filed Sept. 10, 1965 Aug. 22, 1967 s. E. BOHLMANN 3,337,037

STORAGE CONTAINER FOR AIR-SENSITIVE MATERIALS Filed Sept. 10, 1965 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 ll l E @Mw INVENTOR United States Patent 3,337,087 STORAGE CONTAINER FOR AIR-SENSITIVE MATERIALS Siegfried E. Bohlmann, 2712 Lindell St. Silver Spring, Md. 20902 Filed Sept. 10, 1965, Ser. No. 486,400 2 Claims. Cl. 220-93 ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A container having a storage compartment of variable capacity for holding air-sensitive materials so that the compartment will always be completely filled with such materials to prevent the accumulation of any air therein. Said container including means for enlarging the compartment to enable the refilling thereof with the airsensitive material. I

This invention relates to a storage container, such as a bottle or jug in which air-sensitive materials, such as photographic developer solutions, may be safely stored and protected from spoilage through contact with air or oxidation.

An object of the invention is to provide such a container which is :divided by an expansible partition into compartments or chambers one of which is adapted to contain air-sensitive materials, and the other of which may be pressurized to restrict the first mentioned compartment to maintain a desired level of the material in the first mentioned compartment, to prevent an unoccupied space occurring in the first mentioned compartment in which air can collect.

A further object of the invention is to provide such a container from which the stored air-sensitive material may be poured, as from a bottle or jug.

Still another object of the invention is to provide such a storage container having novel means for pressurizing and depressurizing the pressurized compartment.

Various other objects and advantages of the invention will hereinafter become more fully apparent from the following description of the drawings, illustrating presently preferred embodiments thereof, and wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of a preferred embodiment of the invention, including a fragmentary showing of a receptacle in which the invention is normally stored;

FIGURE 2 is an enlarged horizontal sectional view,

taken substantially along a plane as indicated by the line 22 of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is a vertical sectional view taken substantially along a plane as indicated by the line '3-3 of FIG- URE 2; and

FIGURE 4 is a fragmentary sectional view taken along a plane corresponding to the plane of FIGURE 3, and illustrating a slightly modified embodiment of the invention.

Referring more specifically to the drawings, and first with reference to FIGURES 1, 2 and 3, the storage container as disclosed therein and embodying the invention is designated generally -6 and is illustrated as a bottle or jug having a pouring neck 7 rising from a top wall 8 thereof and which is internally threaded to receive a threaded plug 9 by which said neck 7 is normally sealed.

An expansible bellows-type partition 10 is disposed within the container 6 and has an open lower end 11 which is sealed by a conventional sealer 12 completely around said open bottom 11 and completely around the interior of the container 6, above but adjacent the container bottom 13. The partition 10 divides the interior of the container 6 into an upper storage compartment or chamber 14 and a lower expansible compartment or chamber 15.

The container 6 includes a large bore or cylinder 16 which is formed in a part of the side wall 17 of said container and which has an open upper end defined by an externally threaded nipple 18 which extends above the top wall 8, and an open bottom defined by :an internally threaded bore portion 19 which terminates above the container bottom 13. The part of the container wall 17 forming the wall of the bore or cylinder 16 has a passage 20 formed therein including an outlet end 21 which opens into the compartment 15 below the partition 10 :and inlet end 22 which opens into the bore or cylinder 16, near the upper end thereof.

A foot valve 23 is threadedly connected to and detachably mounted in the threaded lower end 19 of the cylinder 16, and a pump piston 24 is reciprocably mounted in the cylinder 16 above said foot valve and has a passage 25 extending from end-to-end therethrough and in which is mounted an upwardly opening check valve 26. A piston rod 27 extends upwardly from the piston 24 slidably through a guide collar 28 which is threadedly mounted on the nipple 18. The piston rod 27 has a handle 29 at its upper end, which is disposed above the guide collar 28.

A part of the wall 17 has an inwardly extending internally threaded bore 30 in which a sleeve 31 is threadedly mounted. Sleeve 31 is internally restricted intermediate of its ends to define an inwardly facing valve seat 32. The sleeve 31 has a restriction 33 at its inner end. An inwardly opening valve 34 is disposed between the valve seat 32 and restriction 33 and has a stem 35 which extends outwardly through the valve seat 32. A spring 36 is contained in the sleeve 31, between the restriction 33 and valve 34, and normally urges the valve 34 outwardly to a closed position.

The compartment or storage chamber 14 is filled with an air-sensitive material, such as a photographic developer solution 37, and the plug 9 is sealed in the neck 7 so that the solution '37 will not be spoiled by contact with air or oxidation. The expansible compartment 15 contains a liquid, such as water as indicated at 38. The container 6 is normally stored in an open top receptacle 39 (FIGURE 1) containing water 38 in which the container 6 is partially submerged and which water 38 is maintained thermostatically at a desired temperature for maintaining the liquid 37 at a :desired temperature.

The container 6 is removed from the receptacle 39 and the plug 7 is removed so that a part of the liquid 37 can be poured from the neck 7 as such liquid is needed. The container 6 is then replaced in the receptacle 39, before replacing the plug 9 and the pump piston 24 is reciprocated in the cylinder 16 by the user manually engaging handle 29, for drawing a part of the water 38 from the receptacle 39 into the cylinder 16, past the foot valve 23, on the upstroke of the piston 24 so that the water thus trapped will pass through the piston passage 25 on the down stroke of the piston 24 and while the check valve 26 is open. This water 38 will be forced through the passage 20 on the next upstroke of the piston 24 and expelled into the compartment 15 for pressurizing said compartment to distend the partition 10 upwardly and thereby restricting the compartment 14 until the liquid '37 rises to a liquid level indicating ring 40 in the lower end of the neck 7. This indicates that the compartment 14 is filled :and the plug 9 is then replaced in the neck 7. The aforedescribed operations are repeated until the liquid 37 needs to be replenished in the compartment 14. At such time, pressure is exerted with the finger against the outer end of the valve stem 35 to allow the liquid 38 to escape by gravity through the sleeve 31, past the open valve 34, to depressurize and restrict the compartment 15 and to enlarge the compartment 14 to the same extent, so that the compartment 14 can be refilled with the liquid 37. It will be noted that the container 6 is at all times maintained substantially filled with liquids so that said container and its contents are sufficiently weighted to main the container 6 in a position resting on the bottom of the receptacle 39.

FIGURE 4 illustrates a slightly modified embodiment of the invention wherein the container 41 differs from the container 6 in that the foot valve 23, pump piston 24, piston rod 27 and guide 28 are dispensed with. In lieu thereof, the internally threaded lower end 19' of the bore 16' is closed and sealed by a threaded plug 42. One end of a flexible hose 43 is connected by a threaded coupling 44 to the nipple 18', and the other end of the hose 43 is connected by a threaded coupling 45 to a source of water supply under pressure, such as a faucet bib 46.

Water 38 is supplied through the hose 43, the bore 16' and passage 20' to the compartment 15 for pressurizing said compartment for the same purpose that the compartment 15 is pressurized by manual operation of the pump piston 24. The compartment 15' is depressurized in the same manner as the compartment 15 by manual operation of the valve 34'. When water is not being supplied under pressure to the bore 16, the coupling 44 can be removed from the nipple 18 and replaced by a threaded cap 47 for sealing the upper end of the bore 16'.

Various other modifications and changes are contemplated and may obviously be resorted to without departing from the function or scope of the invention as hereinafter defined by the appended claims.

I claim as my invention:

1. A container for storing air-sensitive materials, an expansible partition disposed in and dividing said container into an upper storage compartment and a lower expansible chamber, a filling and dispensing neck rising from said container and communicating with the storage compartment, a closure normally sealing said neck and the storage compartment, a conduit formed in said container having a discharge end opening into said expansible chamber, means for supplying a liquid under pressure to said expansible chamber through said conduit for distending said partition to restrict the storage compartment, while said closure is removed, to expel air therefrom, and said container having a manually actuated release valve communicating with the expansible chamber for depressurizing said chamber, said conduit including a pump cylinder, and a manually actuated pump mounted for operation in said cylinder and having a foot valve at its lower end adapted to be submerged in a liquid when the pump is being operated to pressurize said chamber.

2. A container for storing air-sensitive materials having an expansible partition dividing the container into an upper storage compartment and a lower expansible chamber, a filling and dispensing neck rising from said container and communicating with the storage compartment, a closure sealing the neck and storage compartment, manually actuated pump means operatively disposed in the container having an inlet adapted to be submerged in a liquid and an outlet discharging into the expansible chamber for pressuring said chamber when the pump means is operated to expel air from and restrict the storage chamber While the closure is removed, and said container including means for releasing the liquid from the expansible chamber for depressurizing said chamber to enlarge the storage compartment.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,063,430 12/1936 Graser 220 3,018,970 1/ 1962 Wittenberg et al 22085 FOREIGN PATENTS 2,068 9/ 1859 Great Britain.

THERON E. CONDON, Primary Examiner.

RAPHAEL SCHWARTZ, Assistant Examiner. 

1. A CONTAINER FOR STORING AIR-SENSITIVE MATERIALS, AN EXPANSIBLE PARTITION DISPOSED IN AND DIVIDING SAID CONTAINER INTO AN UPPER STORAGE COMPARTMENT AND A LOWER EXPANSIBLE CHAMBER, A FILLING AND DISPENSING NECK RISING FROM SAID CONTAINER AND COMMUNICATING WITH THE STORAGE COMPARTMENT, A CLOSURE NORMALLY SEALING SAID NECK AND THE STORAGE COMPARTMENT, A CONDUIT FORMED IN SAID CONTAINER HAVING A DISCHARGE END OPENING INTO SAID EXPANSIBLE CHAMBER, MEANS FOR SUPPLYING A LIQUID UNDER PRESSURE TO SAID EXPANSIBLE CHAMBER THROUGH SAID CONDUIT FOR DISTENDING SAID PARTITION TO RESTRICT THE STORAGE COMPARTMENT, WHILE SAID CLOSURE IS REMOVED, TO EXPEL AIR THEREFROM, AND SAID CONTAINER HAVING A MANUALLY ACTUATED RELEASE VALVE COMMUNICATING WITH THE EXPANSIBLE CHAMBER FOR DERPESSURIZING SAID CHAMBER, SAID CONDUIT INCLUDING A PUMP CYLINDER, AND A MANUALLY ACTUATED PUMP MOUNTED FOR OPERATION IN SAID CYLINDER AND HAVING A FOOT VALVE AT ITS LOWER END ADAPTED TO BE SUBMERGED IN A LIQUID WHEN THE PUMP IS BEING OPERATED TO PRESSURIZE SAID CHAMBER. 